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Page A—1 6 — Shelton-Mason Journal - Thursday, Jan. 13,
lnslee proposes criminalizing lying about election results
agesaigmnmgast;
Washington State Journal '
One year to the day after the insurrection at the
US. Capitol, Gov. Jay Inslee announced he supports
legislation criminalizing lying about election results.
“It should not be legal in the state of Washington
for elected officials or candidates for office to willfully
lie about these election results,” he said speaking to
reporters in Olympia on Jan. 6.
Making false statements about election results
without evidence would be classified as a gross mis-
demeanor under his proposal, Inslee said. A draft is
undergoing finishing touches, but it doesn’t have any
sponsors yet.
Inslee said he believes the proposal will not violate
the First Amendment protecting freedom of speech
because it aims to only limit language that incites
violence.
“The courts have held that speech that promotes
violence is something that can be regulated to protect
the civil society,” he said. ‘
Speaking forcefully, Inslee argued the legislation is
needed to prevent violence, such as last year’s attack
on the US. Capitol, which stemmed from ex—President
Donald Trump and his allies perpetuating the belief
the election was stolen.
“The defeated president of the United States had a
plan that failed on Jan. 6, but he is right back in the
saddle of insurrection,” Inslee said. '
Trump issued a statement earlier in the day reiter-
ating his claim the election was stolen, ending, “N ev-
er forget the crime of the Presidential Election.
Never give up!”
Inslee urged members of both parties to denounce
three Republican state legislators who attended a
three-day “Cyber Symposium” that promised to pro-
vide evidence of hacking in the election.
Reps. Robert Sutherland, R-Granite _Falls, Vicki
Kraft, R-Vancouver, and Brad Klippert, R-Kennewick,
used tax—payer money to attend the South Dakota
conference hosted by MyPillow founder Mike Lindell.
“It is most disturbing to me that we had three Re—
publican legislators who went to an organizing effort
to continue that insurgency and to continue to sow
doubt in our electoral process,” Gov. Inslee said. “This
is a cancer in our society.”
Additional House and Senate members addressed
the anniversary ofthe Capitol attack during a preview
of the coming legislative session, which started Mon-
day. “I want to be clear, what happened a year ago
was indefensible,” House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, D-
Tacoma, said.’
She praised Senate Minority Leader John Braun,
R-Centralia, and House Minority Leader J .T. Wilcox,
R-Yelm, for their condemnation of the Capitol insur-
rection, despite criticism from fellow party members.
Both Republican leaders called the, violence wrong
and unacceptable.
Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig said elected
members of the Legislature must continue to speak
out. .
“We need to keep talking about'it,” he said. “So we
don’t forget and so we can counter the lies that are.
out there.”
I The Washington State Journal is a nonprofit
news website operated by the WNPA Foundation. To
learn more, go to wastatejournal.org.
Sheldon: Planning anothermostly virtutal sesssion
continued from page A—
average person who pays property
taxes or is looking to buy a home. This
next session we will hear proposals
for property tax relief. I also think the
Legislature needs to acknowledge its
partisan decisions have helped create
this affordable-housing crisis, by im—
posing land-use restrictions, fees and
excessive building—code mandates. I
don’t think this day of reckoning is
coming in but it needs to come.
Q: How do you feel Mason
County has handled the CO-
VID-.19 pandemic and are you
planning on doing anything to
address the pandemic during the
legislative session?
Sheldon: I’m happy that our
schools are reopening and that we
seem to be adjusting to life with CO-
VID. The pandemic has been a ma-
jor challenge for public institutions,
local health departments, hospitals
and the medical community. From
the legislative perspective, I think
we will see Willingness to provide
whatever resources are needed. But
the debate about the governor’s emer-
gency powers is one we need to have,
and I would expect to see renewed
efforts this session to pass legisla-.
tion to reassert the people’s role in
decision-making.
Q: Anything else you would
like to add?
Sheldon: I think the people have
been frustrated by the restrictions
the COVID pandemic has placed on
state and local government proceed- .
ings. Here in Olympia, we’re plan—
ning another mostly virtual session,
in which most members participate
by videoconferencing, the public is
kept out of the Capitol, and all public
testimony in committees is taken Via
webcam. It’s not the same as being
there. Public participation is limited.
Legislators are free to hit the mute
button and ignore the public when it
suits their purposes, as they did last
year when they passed a new state
income tax. They were so determined
to keep the public out of the debate
that they even included a provision
in the bill that prevented the public
from filing a referendum and over;—
turning it in the. last eleétion. In an
ordinary year, I think we would have
seen weeks of protest on the Capitol
steps, the public’s presence would
have reminded the Legislature we do i
not operate in a vacuum, and it might
have caused the Legislature to think
twice. One of the biggest challenges
wewill face in a post-COVID era is
rebuilding public trust, and ensur-
ing that the public has a chance to
participate needs to be one of our top
priorities.
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